5/18/10

Our first few days in Port au Prince have been trying, on both an emotional and a physical level. There was a major incident just hours after our arrival that left me and my team mates overwhelemed with feelings of guilt, doubt, sadness, and heartbreak.
What's amazing is that while our spirits were low, the spirits of the Haitians were there to comfort us. The Haitians that were more directly affected were not bending over backwards- they were doing double back roundoff handspring triple axle front flips to make sure we were being comforted. What's great about that is that we accepted their servitude. Sometimes that's hard for Americans because of pride and the feeling that we go to countries like Haiti to serve because those people need our help, because we are 'priviliged'. Far from the truth.

Something I frequently hear about from people who have traveled to third world countries is that they come home reminded how lucky we are here in America
(and they don't forget to remind those around them of their so-called luck, either. Finish your food! Kids are starving in Africa!)
However, I am learning that my idea of luck must be constrewed.
I'm lucky to own a car so I never have to walk anywhere.
I'm lucky that I have a warm bed so I can blast the AC and still be comfy n cozy under all those blankets.
I'm lucky that I have a cell phone so I don't have to have face-to-face time unless neccessary.
I'm lucky to have an over-abundance food, most being toxic to my body, available for me to eat 24/7.
I'm lucky to have electricity so I can sit around and watch 900 channels of television while my laptop is on, refreshing my facebook homepage every two minutes or so.
I'm lucky to have so many cute clothes in my closet, some I will only wear once or twice, otherwise I'd always look bad and would constantly do laundry. Drats!!!

Why do we think we are lucky, or blessed, because of things? We are reliant on them.
I rely on my car to get me to school and work. No car= no school and no work = a loser going nowhere in life.

I know we have all heard that we are living in a material world (and I am a material girl), but don't mistake our over-consumption and over-prosterity a blessing when it is a curse.

I'd say more but I g2g check my Twitter.

1/4/10

2010

i've never been one to make new years resolutions, but this year i resolved to be someone that makes new years resolutions. so, here's my cliche list of 2010 resolutions- without a twist.

1. god first. not me, not guys, not books, not seasons 3 and 4 of dexter.

2. me second. a very close second. not in a selfish way, but in a self-love way (btw i realize this sounds like something sam bradford says in that video circulating facebook. ha).

3. love those in my life that are hardest to love- and show it. this one's a tough one for me.

4. watch the next season of big brother. laura is my big brother watching buddy, and it was something that we did together that was so much fun. we get waaaay too involved.

5. more quality time with my friends. i've been really bad at this, especially when i'm drowned in schoolwork. i'm already a bit of an introvert and stress/busy-ness= me thinking i need more alone time.

6. not procrastinating as much. i wish i could say that i resolve to eliminate procrastination, but sometimes me working under pressure is okay...just not all the time. if you think you are a bad procrastinator, i can guarantee you i'm worse. i couldn't tell you how much money, time, stress, and good grades my procrastination has caused me.

7. reduce my presence at social events with alcohol. breeding grounds for trouble.

8. go to church on wednesday nights. i always did up until probably my sophomore year of college, and i miss it.

9. write/journal more.

1o. read everything i can get my hands on. i already pretty much do this, but i'm the type of person that either reads an entire book all in a day or two's time, or i'll read a few chapters and not pick it up for like a month (if ever again).

11. get a netflix account.

12. alright..this one's going to sound even dumber than #11...don't get too stressed out when looking at my urban outfitters catalog that comes in the mail monthly. same goes for window shopping and just shopping in general. if i see clothing that i feel i must have, i get all stressed that i can't buy the entire store and then i feel like i'll never be fashionable enough...haha, so stupid.

13. manage my money better. or, just manage my money. i'm terrrrrible with money. just terrible.

14. answer my phone/call people back. i screen calls like nobodies business.

15. beat more people at words with friends.

16. i'm a pretty good speller, but there are some words i can't ever seem to spell quite right. i want to be able to spell these words without having to think twice:
-exercise
-definitely
-forward (i always want to put an 'e' after the 'r')
-necessarily
-privilege
..and yes, i had to look up all of the above words on google.


there are a few things that i already do that i want to continue doing in 2010 and to infinity and beyond. such as...

1. exercise regularly. not counting over this christmas break, i've done a pretty good job at having an exercise routine for the past few years.

2. love my job.

3. make smoothies.

4. quote movies all the time.

5. not eating at sodexho.

12/25/09

brooklynn and aaron are engaged!!!



she broke the news via text (a big no-no, but i forgive her. plus, i was the first she called and told the story to) as i was in the bathtub playing Words with Friends. i got out of the bath to run into the living room to tell the fam but they had already seen it on facebook. ha. typical brooklynn!

i'm so excited for them. their love story is my favorite and brooklynn makes fun of me for telling it to random people all the time. but i can't help myself. aaron is the epitome of a good man and treats brooklynn like every woman dreams and deserves to be treated. he should teach man lessons.
brooklynn is one of my very best friends and has been a constant source of laughter, accountability, and consistancy in my life. she's one of those friends who will always be honest and tell me the things i might not want to hear, but need to hear- not for the sake of bringing me down, but to build me up and have my back along the way. she's so awesome; i hope everyone has a friend like her.

i tried proposing a couple of christmases ago, but my ring of seaweed didn't suit her innermost desires.



re-enacment:


since i'm feeling sentimental- a new friendship...freshman year of college


new years 2008 in maine; this summer in california :)


i would put funny memories on here, but there are too many and they probably would only be funny to us. i'll just say that most of them involve quoting chris farley movies, snl, staying up into the wee hours of the morning crying and/or making embarassing videos, the internet, and laughing our heads off.

*EDIT if this convo (from facebook) doesn't sum up our friendship, i don't know what does.

Katie Johnson ok what the heck on my news feed it says "brooklynn mears is engaged to aaron salvato" and then theres a picture included of karen with an umbrella..???! hahahhahaha

25 minutes ago · · · See Wall-to-Wall
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
haha what! where is it?
19 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
its this picture:
http://photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v284/64/31/1526400020/n1526400020_30039129_5566.jpg

Brooklynn Mears is engaged to Aaron Salvato.
7 minutes ago · Comment · Like
17 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
17 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
hhahahaha i know i like can't stop laughing!!!!! what on earth?!?!
16 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
ok thats a picture of karen in york. she took it and I think tagged me because its in front of my flat and then I tagged aaron because the blue door you see was aarons flat haha so random
16 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
hahaha where it all began...
15 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
HAHAHAH omg i can tell you are like being so serious...but like not at the same time...but omg that is so true...WEIRD!
15 minutes ago
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
its like facebook knew haha
14 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
HAHAHAH!!! it IS like facebook knew! that's weird....maybe a little TOO weird...
14 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
HAHAHAHAHAHAH ahhhh one night me and bryn literally said that after everything we said and laughed equally as hard each time....we'd be like yeah its so cold in here....maybe a little TOO cold. hahah
13 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
hahahaha! that is so funny!!!! i wish i were there! but since i wasn't i'll just do what i always do- make myself part of the joke
11 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
HAHAHAHA ahhhhh omg.....
10 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
hahahha im re-reading this and im cracking up at you like putting the pieces together about how the picture of karen got there...such a little detective hahahahhahha
10 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
hahahahahahhahahahah omg can I type like any more hahahahs remember how we like evaluated our hahahas and like how important it was to have a certain amount of them haha
9 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
hahahahahah yes!
ha= rude, sarcastic
haha=sympathy laugh
hahaha=alright, gotta hand it to ya..that's pretty funny
hahahaha+ = laughing out loud... See More
HAHAHAHA= seriously that's hilarious and i'm laughing aloud.
6 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH hahahahahahahaha i love the gotta hand it to you part
6 minutes ago
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
Katie "we are the funniest girls at SNU....dare I say the word"or "maybe a little tooooo funny" hahahahah
5 minutes ago
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
haha I said "part like you were doing a joke hahaha
5 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
hahahahahahahahaha! part!! or what if you were like "oh yes, i love that bit where you said gotta hand it to ya" hahahahahah
and yes DARE I SAY THE WORLD!
3 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
omg so many things to laugh about....I better delete this convo so it doesnt take up my whole facebook and people still see that I am recently engaged hahahahahaha
2 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
ok but NOT YET!
2 minutes ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
hahahaha!
2 minutes ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
and it won't take it up itll only show like two comments and then some will have the option to look into it further if they wish to do so.
about a minute ago ·
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
^ dead serious
about a minute ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
yeah I just noticed that
about a minute ago
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
omg we are being so serious about this hahahahah
about a minute ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
umm did you say that about being serious before seeing what i wrote?! hahahaha
about a minute ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
HAha i typed that before i saw your dead serious thing hahaha
about a minute ago
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
HAHAHa omg hahahhahahaha
32 seconds ago
Katie Johnson
Katie Johnson
AHHHHH hahahahah ok i love you so much right now hahahaha
29 seconds ago ·
Brooklynn Mears
Brooklynn Mears
i know im like falling in love with you all over again hahahaha
4 seconds ago


congratulations, brooklynn and aaron! i love you guys!

8/16/09

one of my favorite SNL skits ever.

i thought of these videos the other day when my sister and i saw a PORCUPINE in her yard.
i wish SNL were still this good.


Brian Fellows Safari Planet Part 1 - The most amazing home videos are here

7/23/09

I hate titling these.

Last night was one of those nights where I couldn't stop tossing and turning. My mind and body couldn't seem to agree on what to do. Around 6am I saw the light of day peeking through my blinds and I knew there was no way I could sleep now. After giving it some serious thought, at 6:15 I got out of bed and gave into my body's restlessness. I decided I would do my favorite thing- run on the beach.
A few weeks ago, the token nice lady at church ( you know her. Every congregation has one) told my roomates and I that sometimes we have restless sleep because maybe the Lord wants us to pray for someone, or that we need to hear something important from Him. I kind of dismissed her words as "token sweet church lady fluff-talk" but it was a nice thought.

At 6:30 I set out for my run. I'd never seen the beach look like it did; the tide was low and the sand was perfectly smooth. It was cloudy, cool, and practically deserted besides the few old men with their gold-digging machine things.
It was odd the random people that popped in my head mid-run. I got to thinking about Nice Church Lady and what she had said. So, I took the time I had this morning to be alone and to think and pray.
As I got caught up in how great of a person I was being, I was suddenly humbled when "what's your fantasy" by Ludacris had been playing on my pandora for at least a minute without me realizing it (that's the second time that song has played since yesterday).
Good thing the Lord forgives.

Anywho, I will be away from the beach and back to Oklahoma on august 4th. Boo hoo. Snu starts a few weeks after that. I wonder if I'd feel as inspired on a 6:30am run around Bethany after a sleepless night?
Truthfully, I'd probably just lay in bed til it was time to get up. But I'll work on it.

7/1/09

22.

it's already july. in less than 12 days, i'll be 22. that is old. i don't feel old, but my age sounds old. i think i'll just celebrate being 21 for 11 more days instead.

life updates:
i still love it here. i go to the beach every. single. day. i've never been outside more in my life. i think i only go inside to sleep, really. i walk on the beach like no other.

my roomates are the most encouraging and wonderful friends. we have so much fun together. last night we drove around in regis' convertable blasting rap music in case the neighbors were starting to think we lived in a safe neighborhood.

we also bought some fish for our house. they swim about freely in their tank that sits on the table. mine is a big black fish named tanysha letashion booth bhudda bug.

bryn, fiona, and regis picking out the fish:


bryn and fiona found a cat. over my dead body.


their home!!


aaaand some more pictures:


my beach:


apartment.


my roomate, fiona.

6/20/09

Right now, I am sitting in a quaint coffee shop on the corner of Cleveland and pier view by the beach...blogging on my iPhone (I know...I'm even annoying myself right now) that mom so graciously bought me for my upcoming birthday. I am one or two more layouts away from being considered "tan" and I haven't been bored since I got here, despite being dead broke with no job (interview on Monday morning though !). I don't think I'll want to leave this place.

Some hilights:

All of my roomates are here! The first couple of days it was just Bryn and I since regis was out of town and fiona hadn't moved yet. Fiona is the girl I share a room with and she just up and moved without planning just like me. She and regis are from philidalphia and immidietly fiona and I were kindred spirits when within literally minutes of meeting her, she was showing me photos he had taken on her phone of her most interesting hospital patients. example: "here's a 700 pound man!" and "oh this is a pic of a wound filled with maggots!" extremely gross and most likely unethical but I love it.

Regis, my other roomate, has this uncle who is an independent film director (he directed the gymnast and is making a new movie called "a marine story"), so we went on wednesday to a party in west Hollywood celebrating his new film. She also has had the swine flu. Literally, she was diagnosed and everything..so that's pretty cool. Ha.

And of course I have gotten hang out time with my other half freshman year of college and funniest person I know, Brooklynn. She is really the best. I had a mini ( okay, big) breakdown the other night because I did something stupid. The first day I moved in, Bryn told me that they had put down an $1800 security deposit and wouldn't get it back at all if anything happened to the carpet so I needed to be very cautious. So, naturally, I leave my straightened on all night ON THE CARPET and burned it. Awesome. I seriously about died. So I went to brooklynns and just bawled. You know when you're crying so hard and you're explaining why you're crying and it just sounds so stupid that you are also simutaniously cracking up laughing? That was me. Inbetween wails of "I burned their carpet with the straightener!!" I couldn't stop laughing. It was a great releasebof emotions and we were up til 4am talking. I love friends like that.
And my roomates are so sweet about it and I feel like it's made us closer because we have been constanty joking about it...something I didn't think would happen for a year at least. Ha.

Okay, enough blabbing. I have photos for you. Feast your eyes: